The fact that social media apps seem to be the future rage cannot be overemphasized. Thanks to the ever-evolving technology, social media is today one of the most promising markets. Apps like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. have become household names with zillions of active users across the globe. For the fully-wired Net Generation users, these apps are not only a means to keep in touch with the people around, rather it’s a way of life.

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Now, if you are planning to build your own social media app, it is definitely a welcoming decision. Although it is true that a major share of the market is already captured by the above-said apps, even then, the potential of the market is much greater with ample space for newcomers. However, you need to make sure that your app resonates with the users and stands tall on their expectations.

You need to single-mindedly focus on your app idea and try to concoct the best way in which you can offer value to the internet community and keep them engaged. To help you out further, we have compiled this post in which we will look at the basics of how social media apps work, their significant features and finally, delve into the cost specifics of building such an app. Let’s begin.

An Introduction

All social media apps come with the most basic feature of profile creation, where it allows its users to create a personal profile. The profile includes the user’s photograph along with necessary information such as name, age, gender, location, occupation, hobbies, and more. In most cases, you can also upload your pictures, videos, music or any status on your profile.

The most significant feature of these apps remains to be the ability to connect with people and make friends with other users. Let’s have a look at some of the most common features of such apps.

Some Must-Have Features

1. Easy & Hassle-free Registration

Nobody wants to fill those long and boring forms to sign up for your app. Therefore, allowing quick registration using the existing social media profiles is a great and effective way to start building up your user base. A seamless and hassle-free registration option ensures faster adoption of the app. Signing up with existing profiles permits the users to automatically import their information, and thus save time.

You can also go in for setting up a viral sign-up mechanism for your app. For example, you can offer vouchers to new users if they invite a specific number of contacts to the app.

2. Tools for Self-Expression

One of the reasons for the unprecedented success of Snapchat is the fantastic array of photo filters it has to offer. Such tools entice the users and keep them engaged right off the bat. So, to make your app addictive, provide features like creating photo avatars, photo filters, option to name your profile, altering the look of your profile, etc. All these tools will allow the users to create highly personal and customized profiles, offering a truly delightful experience.

3. Link Building

As discussed earlier, one of the prime functions of all social media apps is to help the users get in touch with the people around. So, make sure that your app offers all the following options:

Single click invites

Possibility to import contacts from other social media profiles

A search bar and algorithm to locate friends and family

A list of “People You May Know” along with options to connect with them

4. Social Media Integration

Seamless social media integration is very important for all social media apps. Users wish to share their posts with the people they know. So, your app should offer the facility to:

Instantly upload photos on several social media platforms concurrently

Input geolocation

Option to tag people

Your app should eliminate the need for the users to go through the boring uploading process on different apps.

Digging Deep into the Cost Specifics

What we have discussed above are some essential ideas that may give birth to hundreds of distinct app interpretations. And therefore, the cost of each project will vary a lot. Even if you create a clone app of any of your favorite social media app, the developer will have to pitch in twice the efforts to bring out the uniqueness of the product. So, the precise estimation of all financial investments will directly depend upon the number of features integrated.

Now, we shall generalize our discussion and talk about some essential criteria that you can plan far ahead. Generally, the cost of an app depends upon the number of working hours expended by the developer in developing all options that you want in your product. And the time, in turn, depends upon the complexity of the issue.

So, if you are a startup business, it is highly recommended that you begin your journey with creating a simple app, more specifically an MVP, which has a prodigious potential to grow into something greater. If you want to take a chance with a social media app, you can create an MVP with cool location-based functionality for around $35,000 – $50,000.

Creating a comprehensive map for all your targets and ideas is a good way to go. This way, you will know how your app does as it hit the market and at the same time, you can improve the things that need to be improved. Cost of your app will also vary with the platform you choose for developing it – whether it is Android or iOS, the cost for both will be different.

Another pointer, the location of the developing company has a big impact on the cost. For instance, the price you pay to the mobile app developers for custom app development in India will hugely vary from the price you pay in America.

Final Thoughts

Through this post, we have tried our best to shed some light on the most important and common matters when it comes to developing a proficient social media app. Such apps have become quite a buzz among the users and developing one can certainly help you set up a big channel for an ongoing revenue stream.

Just make sure to plan your app features and functionalities well in advance, to avoid spending bags of money. A little careful planning and competent project execution from the very beginning can help you achieve a much more successful and cost-friendly end product.

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by James Grills

James Grills is a technical writer with a passion for writing on emerging technologies in the areas of mobile application development and IoT technology. He is a marketing advisor - currently associated with Cumulations Technologies a mobile app development company in India.